Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-03-08
ORIENTAL CUSTOMS.
A Lecture ON Jerusalem by a Native
of the Holy City.


A Lecture ON Jerusalem by a Native
of the Holy City.
Wad- Ell Ward, Hebrew, native of
Jerusalem, delivered lecture last evening
at the First Baptist Church. to large au-
dience. His lecture was upon q Jerusalem
and the Holy Land, the customs, dress, re-
ligion and manners of that people, In
Jerusalem. he said, man was never of
age so long as his parents lived. If the
son or his wife committed a wrong the
father retained the right of Furnishing them
for the offense, and none could gainsay his
authority. If on the part of the son the
offense was one of serious nature, the
father could drive him from the country
and could compel him to leave forever
his wife and children. The climate of
Jerusalem is said tic be glorious, something
similar TO that Of the Oroyille citrus belt.
The girls are given in marriage at ages
running from II to 10, while boys were
permitted to marry at ages ranging from Il
! to 49, When parents desire to select wife
for their son the mother goes to a family of
the same social position, forms the ac-
quaintance of the daughter, and after re-
peated visits, if she concludes that the
girl is
A SUITABLE PERSON TO WED
Her son, she so informs her husband. The
latter then visits the daughters parents
and asks the price, which, as rule, is
fixed in accordance with their social con-
dition. The intended bride is then pre-
sented for the first time to her future hus-
band. This presentation is repeated seven
times. At each presentation she is dressed
in a new garment, supposed to be given
L L. loI
dresses, according to their custom, last the
woman as long as she lives, and in style
are the same as have been worn by the
Jews for ages. The lecturer said
that the price paid for the
daughter was always invested
to the best advantage and kept as sacred
trust for her against the days of misfortune.
Referring to the divorce laws of that coun-
try, he said a husband and wife agree
to disagree, the wife demands bill of
divorce, which is given she returns to her
father, shows her release and is received
again into the family, but if she returns
home without bill of divorce, she is
questioned as to the cause of separation,
and, if it proves to be on account of inf
deity, she is taken immediately outside of
the city and
STONED TO DEATH.
l. ne DuSDdllu, IL uc pIONtS uulTQ6 10 Ills
marriage vows, is punished in like manner.
No distinction is ever made, and death is
as certain to the husband as to the wife.
The speaker showed the three different
methods of reposing while visiting the
house OF a stranger also, referred to the
funeral customs, etc. He said that their
food consisted largely of fruits, and that he
had seen punches of grapes in his native
country which weighed forty pounds. He
also spoke of seeing twenty-five TO thirty
oranges in bunch, which would measure
twenty inches and over in circumference.
The lecturer said if he could only remain
in the northern citrus belt a few years he
would grow as fine oranges here as they
have in Palestine In speaking of butter
making he said that his people made their
churns by stripping the skin from goat,
and then tanned it, turned the hair inside,
and then poured the milk in it it was then
churned. This method produced butter
equal to any furnished by the American
restaurateur, it being strong and hairy.
Referring to the price OF living, he said
that seven cups of coffee only costs 90
cents, and that 100 eggs could be pur-
chased for % cents. A sheep which
would weigh from $50 to 400 pounds could
be bought for 81. The lecturer then con-
cluded the evenings entertainment, which
lasted two hours, by singing songs in eleven
different languages.